If you are organising an event to celebrate the International Year of Biodiversity, we encourage you to share your activities with us and everyone in your country. If you wish to see the information below in your official language, please send us a translation (.doc or .pdf) at iyb2010@cbd.int.

If you have videos and photos of your celebrations of the International Year of Biodiversity, please send them to us!

Conservation International (CI) works to ensure a healthy and productive planet for all of us. People depend on nature for many things: a stable climate, clean air, fresh water, abundant food, cultural resources and the incalculable additional benefits the world's biodiversity provides.

Aichi-Nagoya COP 10 CBD Promotion CommitteeThe Convention on Biological Diversity is governed by the Conference of the Parties (COP), consisting of all governments (and regional economic integration organizations) that have ratified the treaty. This ultimate authority reviews progress under the Convention, identifies new priorities, and sets work plans for members. The COP can also make amendments to the Convention, create expert advisory bodies, review progress reports by member nations, and collaborate with other international organizations and agreements.

Pursuant to decision IX/35, the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 10) will be held in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, from 18 to 29 October 2010.

COP 10 will include a high-level ministerial segment organized by the host country in consultation with the Secretariat and the Bureau. The high‑level segment will take place from 27 to 29 October 2010.

The United Nations UniversityThe United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU-IAS) works at the intersection of environment and society to meet the challenges of sustainability through advanced research, policy advice, and capacity development and training. In particular over the years, UNU-IAS has developed expertise on issues of the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

Our World 2.0Our World 2.0 is a webzine and video brief series that explores the interactions between our daily lives and complex issues like climate change, oil dependency, food security and biodiversity.

MERRY PROJECTSee details in Partners section at the bottom of the page, listen to Koji Mizutani speak about his project in the video below, or click on the title to go to the website. What makes you merry? More info on the MERRY FOREST PROJECT.

Smiles for Peace and BiodiversityKoji Mizutani talks about the Merry Project. Watch on Youtube

In the news

Fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (COP-MOP 5) and Conference of the Parties (COP-10)

High-Level segment linked to the International Year of Biodiversity; UNESCO exhibition displayed; Equator Initiative Prize handed out; Youth Event; A special International Year of Biodiversity fair should be held – on 2010 Success stories. Linked with the CEPA fair; Closure of the International Year of Biodiversity; Contribution of the SCBD to the launch of the International Year of Forests in 2011

Encourage all parties to show their 2010 successes and identify best practices; seek to gain a commitment for a timetable for the post-2010 Target, including a commitment from both COP presidencies; showcase the ABS regime as a sign of success.

Past events

25 January 2010, Kick off event in Tokyo!During the event, the first meeting of the Japanese national committee for the International Year of Biodiversity was held during the IYB kick-off event. The committee, chaired by the Chairman of Nippon Keidanren, is comprised of national and local governments, academia, NGOs, private sector and media. The meeting was followed by the appointment of additional members of “Life on the Earth” Supporters (mostly celebrities and famous figures) which attracted much attention of Japanese media.

"The International Year of Biodiversity 2010 Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden Green Festival" On the basis of the spirit of "Green Month Campaign" (from April 15 to May 14), there will be "The International Year of Biodiversity 2010 Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden Green Festival" in Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden. This festival features provision of various activities through nature, a nature walk, handicrafts, etc; an introduction of the highlight of a national park; sale of special products such as folk crafts; an offering of information about conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity.

The 2010 International Year of Biodiversity, convene the 10th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-10) to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Aichi-Nagoya in October 2010. In addition, under the theme of biodiversity, a talk show will also be performed.

23 May 2010, Sub-global Assessment of Satoyama and Satoumi in Japan: Launching the Cluster Findings towards CBD/COP-10Registration is free and open to the public. Applications will be accepted through email. The deadline is Tuesday, 18 May 2010. Please write “Registration for the Japan SGA Symposium” in the title and include your name, company/organization, email address, telephone number, and where you heard about this event in the message body, and send your email to eventregistration@ias.unu.edu. More information can be found by clicking here: Agenda and Objectives or the Media Release.

06 June 2010, The 9th Gathering of Citizens for Creating Mountain Day was held at 10 locations including Yawata Highland in Kita-Hiroshima Town, Hiroshima Prefecture with the objective of motivating citizens to preserve mountains. It was a refreshing day with soft greens under the blue sky in the early summer in Japan. A total of 8,600 people participated in the event to enjoy a number of programs such as thinning trees in the mountains, climbing mountains, nature observation walk, forest nature games and cutting logs. Click here to read the report of this activity (in Japanese).

As global citizens, JCN for CBD agree with three objectives of the CBD and take actions to achieve the CBD’s Convention of Life on Earth. Our association recognizes the importance of collaboration and unity as a way of achieving our common goals through consensus. We aim to operate in a democratic manner with openness and transparency.

Our association recognizes the biodiversity problem as a global challenge and the COP10/MOP5 as a place for the international community to make decisions. We respect the knowledge, ideas and actions of global citizens and accept responsibility to address and assist with biodiversity issues, especially in developing countries where biodiversity loss has direct and serious impacts. More details.

"What is MERRY for you?" We have been asking this simple question to people all over the world and collecting their smiles and messages. MERRY PROJECT is a communication-art project to spread the wave of MERRY under the theme of "Smile is a universal communication". We believe each person that participates in MERRY minds and cares for the Earth in their smiles and their messages will link to each other across global borders.

The APN is a network of 22 member governments in the Asia-Pacific whose vision is to enable countries in the region to successfully address global change (GC) challenges through science-based response strategies and measures, effective science and policy linkages, and scientific capacity development. APN supports regional cooperation in GC and sustainable development issues, particularly in developing countries. It strengthens interactions among scientists and policy-makers and strives to provide scientific input to policy decision-making and scientific knowledge to the public. APN cooperates with GC networks and organisations and links the research it sponsors with the research conducted in other regions.

The UN University is dedicated to the generation and transfer of knowledge, and the strengthening of individual and institutional capacities in furtherance of the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.

The mission of UN University is to contribute, through collaborative research, capacity development, and advisory services to efforts to resolve the pressing global problems of human survival, development and welfare that are the concern of the United Nations, its Peoples and Member States.